Aqua America Completes Eight Acquisitions During First Quarter

Aqua America, Inc., recently announced that it completed eight acquisitions in five states the first quarter of 2005. The first quarter growth comes on the heels of Aqua America's 29 acquisitions in 2004.

"We continued to seize growth opportunities during the quarter in many of our states, which helped fuel added momentum for our growth-through-acquisition strategy," said Aqua America Chairman Nick DeBenedictis. "These 'tuck-in' acquisitions continue to add to our customer numbers and help fill in our national footprint in the many areas in which we do business. Further, we broke new ground in the non-regulated wastewater arena, purchasing two businesses that afford us the opportunity to provide additional services to another segment of the wastewater industry."

The most recent acquisitions were completed by the company's non-regulated subsidiary, Aqua Wastewater Management, Inc., which purchased Concord Wastewater Services, Inc. and Golden Mechanical, Inc. of Delaware County, Pa. These acquisitions represent Aqua America's first venture into this specialized area of the wastewater business and has enabled the company to provide "in-house" sludge hauling and collection system maintenance services for its own wastewater treatment facilities in southeastern Pennsylvania as well as for it O&M wastewater clients.

Aqua America completed the following purchases in the first quarter of 2005:

1. January 2005 - Aqua Texas, Inc. purchased the water system at the Saddlewood Estates development in Kerrville, Texas that currently serves 200 residents, and will serve an additional 250 residents upon the development's completion.

2. January 2005 - Aqua New Jersey, Inc. purchased the water and wastewater system assets of Bear Brook Village which currently serves more than 130 water and wastewater residents, plus a golf course, in Fredon Township, Sussex County. The system has the potential to serve 120 more residents upon the development's completion.

4. February 2005 - Aqua New Jersey, Inc. recently purchased the water and wastewater system assets of Hanover Village which serves approximately 300 residents in North Hanover Township, Burlington County.

5. February 2005 - Aqua Missouri, Inc. purchased the water system assets of LTA Water Co., which serves nearly 300 residents in Branson, Taney County.

6. February 2005 - Aqua Pennsylvania, Inc. purchased the Stanton water system which serves approximately 425 customers in South Abington Township, Lackawanna County.